Improvement in letter-box indicators



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICER.

EDl VARD P. MURPHY, OF ALBANY, NEW YORK.

IMPROVEMENT IN LETTER-BOX INDICATORS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 222,597, dated December 16, 1879; application filed November 14, 1878.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD P. MURPHY, of the city and county of Albany, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Letter-Box Indicators, of which the following is a full and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specification, in which- Figure l is a perspective view of a letterbox with indicator attached, and Fig. 2 a vertical section through the center line of the indioator.

My invention consists in combining with a street letter-box an indicator whose hands can only be operated from the interior of the box, in the manner hereinafter fully described.

The object of my invention is to advertise to the public the hour when the next collection of mail-matter will be taken from the box.

As shown in the drawings, A is the letterbox, which may be made in any desirable forin. Secured to the face of the box is an hour-dial, B, whose graduations are exposed to public view.

0 is the hour-hand, secured to a sleeve running through the dial and into the interior of the box, where it is provided with a head, 0, for moving the hand around to its required position. A spring, 0, interposed between the head 0 and the front plate of the box,produc-es sufficient friction to retain the hand in position when set.

I) is the minute-hand, secured to the shaft cl, which passes through the sleeve of the hourhand into the interior of the box, where there is secured to it the head d, for turning the hand. The friction-spring d retains the 1ninute-hand'in its required position.

A plate of heavy glass, E, or other transparent protector, covers the dial, and while it prevents all external interference with the hands, affords a clear and unobstructed sight of them. Said glass is held by a standing rim, b,of the dial from bearing upon the hands, and is retained in its place by the overlapping flange f of the ring F, secured to the face of the box A.

The hour and minute hands are set to the requiredtiine by turning them by the heads 0 and d from the interior of the box; and it is evident that when arranged to operate in this manner, with the hands incased as herein described, when the box is locked, any external interference with them is effectually prevented.

I claim as my invention The combination, with letter-box A, dial B, hour-hand O,minute-hand D, the shaft and sleeve of said hands, and heads 0 and d, of springs c and (1 glass plate E, rini Z), and flange f, whereby the need of a catch and hand-turning device is dispensed with, and

the dial and hands are permanently secured against interference from outside.

ED\VARD P. MURPHY. Witnesses WILLIAM H. Low, A. F. Low. 

